Felon gets 5 years in high-speed chase case

Nearly 10 months after leading law enforcement on a high speed chase through Sterling, suspect Gabriel Vasquez was sentenced to five years in the Department of Corrections Wednesday in Logan County District Court.

Vasquez, 31, received five years for second-degree burglary – a class 4 felony – and two years for conspiracy to commit vehicular eluding – a class 5 felony – which will run concurrently. The rest of the 16 charges against him were dropped as a result of the plea deal.

On Jan. 31, the defendant fled the scene of a reported domestic violence call in which he allegedly broke down the victim's door in a rage. When officers attempted to pull him over, he led them through Sterling, hitting two cars, injuring a bystander and leading officers on a foot chase before he was apprehended.

Judge Charles Hobbs took the lower end of the sentences requested by Deputy District Attorney Zack Balkin and Defense Attorney Thor Bauer, who requested 10 and 4 years, respectively, after Vasquez's requests for intensive supervised probation and Community Corrections placement were denied.

Bauer and Vasquez's parents and wife argued that the incident was a result of his addiction to methamphetamine, saying that they hoped that he would get the treatment he needed in prison.

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According to his pre-sentence investigation, Bauer said Vasquez admitted he “wasn't thinking correctly” and “put people in harm's way.” Vasquez, whose head hung low during the hearing, also apologized in court.

Hobbs said he understood that Vasquez was struggling with an addiction, but argued that he had to weigh the facts of the case with the facts of the defendant.

“This is not a simple drug case, or a case where he wasn't able to remain drug free,” he said. “He came to court with 16 charges ... from the event. And these are serious charges.”

“Whatever drug abuse he has, it doesn't do justice to focus on that in a case of this nature.”

Hobbs added that Vasquez had three prior felony convictions, so he couldn't make the argument that it was a “one-time thing.” Balkin said he would have been eligible for habitual criminal charges, but dropped them as a part of the plea agreement – which Bauer argued was irrelevant to the case.

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